Places to Forage (in the Twin Cities Area and Minnesota)
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I really wish that foraging laws were more intuitive. I long for a foraging culture in the US that is more similar to that of Sweden, where people have “the right to roam in the countryside, forage and pitch a tent anywhere for up to two nights (as long as it's at least 230 feet from a home or farm).” Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll see anything like that around here anytime soon. However, foraging laws are changing, often for the better. I am part of an effort to give foragers a voice in the management of state land in Minnesota. Local county parks are changing their outdated ordinances to better reflect actual land use. Back in 2019 I wrote an article on foraging legality, and with all these changes, I think it’s time to provide an update!
Private Property
Private property can be a rich source of wild edibles! These delicious plants and mushrooms were picked on private land.
If you have private property, that is often a good place to start foraging. Even small yards in the city can be rich in wild edibles. Land that is not currently productive can always be restored with native plants. Purchase native edibles from reputable nurseries; ask friends for some; or dig them up from areas that will be destroyed, such as future logging, mining, or building sites. Never dig them up from public lands.
Private land offers some advantages over picking from public areas. For one thing, you have more control over the site and hopefully have a good idea of the history, so you can better avoid contamination. It is also easier to monitor populations to prevent overharvesting, and to act in reciprocity with the land by doing things like watering thirsty plants; managing invasive species; and encouraging native plants, mushrooms, pollinators, and other species.
Furthermore, private land is exempt from most foraging laws that regulate public land. The only exception is that harvesting of protected species is prohibited on private land as well as public. In the state of Minnesota, species of special concern are not typically protected (though certain parks or localities may have more stringent regulations.) However, “a person may not take, import, transport, or sell any portion of an endangered or threatened species.” You can view a list of endangered, threatened, and special concern species in Minnesota’s Rare Species Guide. If you don’t live in Minnesota, check your local Department of Natural Resources (or analogous agency) for a list of protected species in your area. The federal government also maintains its own list of threatened and endangered species (this does not include species that are only protected by state laws.)
If you don’t own any property, you can always reach out to a friend, neighbor, or community member. The worst that could happen is that they’ll say no! I’ve knocked on people’s doors to ask if I could pick their falling fruits, and I know someone who will leave a note with their phone number and email address at doors of properties they’d like to forage. You can also try getting in touch with local community gardens—they often have weeds that they are all too happy for eager foragers to get rid of. Members of social groups like Facebook and Meet Up may also offer their property to respectful foragers. If you’re interested in a property but you don’t know who owns or manages it, you can use a paid map app with parcel data like OnX or CalTopo, or look for a free plat mat online.
Public Property
Maria picked these chokecherries along the Midtown Greenway
Most people aren’t land barons with extensive access to private property. That’s why it’s important to manage public lands in part for sustainable foraging access. When harvesting from public locations, you must first determine who manages the land you’re interested in. It could be city, county, regional, state, or federal property. Each entity will have its own rules and regulations, and they may vary for different properties overseen by that governmental body.
Midtown Greenway
Twin Cities residents can explore the Midtown Greenway for wild edibles. The Midtown Greenway is a bike corridor in south Minneapolis that runs east-to-west between 28th Street and Lake Street. It was converted from railroad tracks and is owned by the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority. Foraging along the Greenway isn't illegal, but it isn't sanctioned either, due to concerns over soil contaminants from the railroad, which include arsenic and petroleum products. However, there are ways to work around soil contamination; see this blog post for more information.
City and County Parks
Many people express surprise when they learn that foraging is completely illegal in most city and county parks. The Twin Cities Metro has an extensive park system; click the provided link for a map! Below is a list of area county or city parks that allow some form of harvesting. Note that previous ordinances of all of these places completely banned any kind of foraging in the past. Some of the rules changes are very recent and in process.
Anoka County Parks
Chapter V, Section 1 of the park ordinances state:
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
a. Intentionally remove, alter, injure, or destroy any tree, plant, rock, soil, mineral, or other natural feature without a Permit; or
b. Dig trenches, holes, or other excavations in a park without a Permit; or
c. Introduce any plant or other agent within a park without a Permit.
d. Harvest edible fruits, plants and mushrooms for commercial use.
This language is unfortunately a bit vague, but I’ve been told by park staff that visitors are allowed to pick fruits, nuts, and mushrooms for personal, non-commercial use. I have held several foraging workshops at Wargo Nature Center, and during the class we have special permission to pick whatever we want, as long as it’s done respectfully and sustainably. If you would like to join in on such a class, I have one coming up with mushroom forager Ariel Bonkoski on Sunday, August 24th, 2025!
Foraging fiddlehead ostrich ferns during a spring workshop at Wargo Nature Center. Foraging greens is only allowed during park-sanctioned events.
Dakota County Parks
Section 5.2 of the ordinance states: “Foraging is allowed for identified items that are above ground and in designated areas per Park Rules & Regulations. No digging or excavating is allowed when foraging. Special Use Permits are required to forage any item or in any area not listed in the Park Rules & Regulations.” Excited to learn of this change, I scoured their website in search of these “rules & regulations” but could not find what I was looking for. So I reached out to my contact at Dakota County Parks, who told me that the rules are still being developed and are therefore not yet public. After a few emails, she put me in touch with her colleague who has been working on the policy guidelines. Since they are still being drafted, I can’t provide any definite details at this time. However, in general, fruits and mushrooms will be okay to harvest without a special use permit as long as they are under a certain quantity. Other foraging activities will require a permit, which can be requested via email. Foragers should be aware that herbicide is used in certain areas as part of invasive species management practices.
Approved Dakota County Parks events will have more leeway in foraging additional items. And I have good news on that front! On Saturday, October 11th and Sunday, December 7th I will be holding official foraging events at Lebanon Hills Regional Park. Classes should be posted online by the end of August, and registration for programs opens September 1st.
Additionally, Dakota County Parks employees are developing a framework that will encourage foragers to act in reciprocity with the land by volunteering in native plant propagation, invasive species removal, and site stewardship programs. The latter will include tending edible wild species as part of native plant restoration projects. I think this is exactly the kind of work foragers excel at, and I look forward to learning more and getting involved! If you have questions about stewardship opportunities or the foraging rules and permitting process, please contact Sara Nelson. You can also view public volunteer workdays on the Dakota County Parks website.
Minneapolis City Parks
Due to public pressure, in 2017 the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board changed its ordinance on “molesting vegetation” (as they call it) to allow foraging and urban agriculture activity within the park system. It is a lengthy read, but basically states that the general public may harvest certain fruits or nuts from certain areas within the park system, as long as it's for non-commercial use. Here is the document detailing where and what you can harvest in the Minneapolis Park System.
The ordinance and the document both strongly imply that you are allowed to forage these 14 fruit and nut species in non-excluded areas for personal use. The approved list contains native species such as crab apple, serviceberry, hickory, and black walnut, as well as the invasive white mulberry (Morus alba.) However, this more recent webpage tries to turn the original intent of the ordinance on its head by pretending that “harvesting” and “foraging” are two different things—foraging (collecting wild food) is bad and destroys the environment and is illegal, while harvesting (collecting a food crop planted for that purpose) is good and lawful. I could honestly write an entire blog post on how counterproductive this language is, but instead I’ll just point out three things: 1.) The people who enforce the law are cops, not plant experts or ecologists; and 2.) In many places it is difficult to determine whether a tree or shrub came up with or without human assistance; and 3.) If the original intent of the ordinance was to only allow picking from planted tree/shrub crops, why include large tracts of forests and fields in the non-excluded areas, and why in the world include the widely spreading white mulberry on the list? It just doesn’t add up, and it makes the law far more confusing than it has to be.
Ramsey County Parks
Part 4, line a of the regulations states: “Removing, altering, or damaging any plant or animal is not allowed. Fruits, nuts, and mushrooms on park property may be foraged and harvested for personal use.” Thanks for keeping it simple, Ramsey County!
Washington County Parks
Chapter V, Section 1, line f of the ordinances states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to forage or gather flora without a use permit, including but not limited to fungi, berries, nuts, seeds, and oil. Foraging activities must be for personal use and in designated areas.”
The foraging permit is free and easy to obtain online or at a park office. It allows for non-commercial collection of fungi, berries, nuts, seeds, flowers, and leaves, but not roots.
Note that only certain areas in certain parks are designated for foraging activity. You can find the complete list on the Washington County Parks website.
Minnesota State Land
Minnesotans are fortunate to have access to a large tracts of state land, including state forests, parks, wildlife management areas, and more. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) manages 5.6 million acres of land. Foraging is legal on much of this land, though it depends on the land type. If you don’t live in Minnesota, check with your local DNR (or analogous governmental body) for assistance.
Chanterelles found at a Minnesota State Park.
Digging up or damaging roots, greens, and flowers of plants is not legal on any Minnesota state land without a permit. This means it is not legal to dig leeks, harvest fiddleheads, pick herbs, or collect other plant parts that are not fruiting bodies. Furthermore, commercial harvesting is also not allowed without a permit. Harvesting or foraging of mushrooms or any plants other than edible fruits is not allowed along state trails. Most scientific and natural areas do not allow any kind of removal of plants, fungi, or other natural features; there are a few exceptions that allow berry and/or mushroom picking. In state parks, state recreation areas, state waysides, state forest recreation areas, state forests, wildlife management areas, and aquatic management areas, you may harvest edible fruits and mushrooms for personal consumption.
Note that language was recently added that prohibits harvesting “large amounts” of edible fruits and mushrooms for personal use (though there is an option to obtain a permit for state forest land.) This is in response to the DNR’s failed attempt to officially limit foraging to a gallon per person per day. They claim that the current rule (which states that “edible fruit and mushrooms may be harvested for personal, noncommercial use”) is too vague and results in people damaging the environment by overharvesting edible species and trampling native plants. So instead they adopted the vague language of “large amounts.” Despite the change of language on the website, the rule itself remains unchanged.
In order to obtain a permit, you must visit the DNR Forestry office closest to the state forest where you wish to harvest. (Permits are not issued for state parks or other lands.) Since they don’t issue permits at the downtown St. Paul DNR headquarters, that means the closest location to the Twin Cities is 2 hours away.
Here are further links with more information:
Here are links to find locations of state land:
Federally Managed Land
Minnesota is also home to large tracts of federal land; in the Twin Cities area, we have the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, which is run by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The foraging rules state:
Visitors are allowed to forage for nuts, berries, and mushrooms (fungi) on the Refuge for personal use only. You are limited to collection of 1 gallon per person per day, and you may not sell what you forage. Please review the stipulations below to help plan for your visit.
In addition to finding nuts, berries, and mushrooms, individuals occasionally request permission to hand harvest native prairie plant seed from Refuge lands. Many do this in order to establish small plots of native plants on their own private property. These plots can be for native plant landscaping purposes, or to develop their own native habitat for wildlife at home.
Harvesting wild plums at the Louisville Swamp, part of the Minnesota Valley Wildlife Refuge.
National forest land also can contain excellent foraging locations. I wasn’t able to find a law that covers all national forests in the US, but my understanding is that in general, as long as you’re not damaging trees, they don’t really care too much what you do. National forest land is primarily managed for timber sales, (which is why they don’t want the trees damaged) and also why they aren’t too concerned with what you pick, since logging heavily disturbs forested sites. Regardless, it is best to look up the specific national forest that you’re interested in.
Minnesota contains the Superior National Forest, which permits “gathering limited amounts for personal use of bark, berries, boughs, bryophytes, bulbs, burls, Christmas trees, cones, ferns, forbs, fungi including mushrooms, grasses, mosses, nuts, pine straw, roots, sedges, seeds, transplants, tree sap, and wildflowers.” Contained within the Superior National Forest is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), which I’m assuming has the same foraging laws as the greater national forest. This list of rules and regulations for the BWCAW unfortunately does not mention harvesting.
The Chippewa National Forest is also found in Minnesota. Unfortunately, it doesn’t list rules as plainly as the Superior National Forest, but it does mention berry picking in the FAQs and does not include general foraging under its list of permits (though it does have permits for specific harvests, like firewood, balsam boughs, Christmas trees, and maple tapping.)
Harvesting vegetation and fungi in US National Parks is highly regulated. Some parks allow harvesting of certain fruits, berries, or nuts, as long as it is harvested by hand for personal use. They may set a limit to the size and/or quantity harvested, define a specific area where edibles may be harvested, and restrict the possession and consumption of wild edibles to the park area. For more information, find a specific park. Near Minnesota (though technically in Michigan), Isle Royale allows “picking small quantities of berries and wild edibles for personal consumption.” Minnesota’s only national park, Voyageurs, lets you “harvest up to one gallon of berries for personal consumption.”
TLDR
Confused? You’re not the only one! Here are some key points to remember:
Most public land in Minnesota does not allow for harvesting roots, stems, leaves, or flowers of plants without a special use permit.
Where foraging is allowed on public land in Minnesota, it is generally limited to fruits, nuts, and mushrooms for personal, non-commercial use.
A person may not take, import, transport, or sell any portion of an endangered or threatened species, regardless of whether you’re on public or private land.
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